Fire and blood! fire and blood! And round and round, till the blindin scud And I stripped my arm right up to the shouldher- The strength?" I says, "and by Him in Heaven, And she coaxed and coaxed, and "wouldn it be better Or to wait my chance?" and all that stuff! 66 Aisy! that's not what I want at all," I says "I'll stand on his body, and call "And then you'll be hung," says she, and I laughed- Is no Pazon's work." "Would I go to the Brew?" But she held me, and-"Oh my son! my son!" "Will you go to the Pazon?" "Yes! I will, Not another word, but away we went- Aw, the woman was hard, but the woman was true. "Missis Baynes!" says the Pazon, "Missis Baynes! Missis Baynes! Will you plase to tell me what this means?" And white as a sheet, and he cuts a caper, And he drops the specs, and he drops the paper, And backs and gets under the lee of a chair- I raely thought he was goin to fall- Aw, then the joy he took of me! "And the only one saved from the wreck!" says he. "There wasn no wreck-God d- his eyes! No wreck at all, but Taylor's lies!" "For shame then! Thomas!" and up she stud. "Let him cuss!" says the Pazon, "it'll do him gud." And the look he gev, and the sigh, and the sob! And he saw in a minute the whole of the job, And he tried to speak, but he wasn able, And I laid my head upon the tableQuite stupid lek, and then them two Began to talk, and I hardly knew What was it they said, but "the little drop!" I heard, and "you'll 'scuse him," and "Woman, stop! The lad is drunk with grief," he said, And he come and put his hand on my head; And the poor old fingers as dry as chips! And the pity a tricklin off their tips And makin me all as peaceable Aw, the Pazon was kind and lovin still! So at last, ye see, whatever they had, I didn say nothin, good or bad; And they settled betwix them what would I do, 66 "But off to sea again, aye straight! And, if I could, that very night." So they roused me up, and "Me and your mawther " The Pazon says "Aw, ye needn bother," Says I, "all right!" and then I'll be bail I took it grand out of Pazon Gale— "Now, Pazon," I says, "you know your man And a son of ould Dan's too! a son of ould Dan!" Aw, the Pazon couldn help smilin though- Well, I kept my word, and off at once, Well, Divil or no, the Hector come home; And the two of them berthed there side by side; And the captain as proud, and me like a fool And lodgins of coorse, for I never could stand And " Wipe your feet upon the mat!" And the rules hung up; and fined if you're late, It isn raisonable, it isn: They calls it a Home, I calls it a Prison. Let a man go wherever he chooses! Ould Mawther Higgins' the house that I uses— Jem Higgins' widda-you'll be bound to know her— Clane, but not partickiler. There's Quiggin's too, next door but one, Not Andrew, of coorse! but Rumpy John- But Higginses allis tuk my fancy. There's some comfort there, for you just goes in, And carryin on till all is blue, And your jacket is gone and your waistcoat too. For the woman must live, however thick But mostly afore it come to the spout I'd ask if the money was all run out, And she'd allis tell me whether or no, And I'd lave my chiss, and away I'd go. And so this time I took the street, And I walked along till I chanced to meet A shipmate, somewhere down in Wappin' And "What was I doin? and where was I stoppin?" It was one of them dirty stinkin places, With her elbers stickin outside of her shawl God help them craythurs! the white and the thin! And heavy feet on the floor overhead, And "She's long a dyin," there's some of them said. "Well, it's a rum place to choose to die in-eh?" And "Where have you got her? where? where? where?" And her eyes-aw them eyes! and her face-well! well! "Tom Baynes! Tom Baynes! is it you? is it you? Oh can it be? can it be? can it be true?" Well, I cudn speak, but just a nod— "Oh it's God that's sent you-it's God, it's God!" And she gasped and gasped-"Oh I wronged you, Thomas! Oh Thomas, forgive me, oh Tom, forgive! Oh reach me your hand, Tom, reach me your hand!” But I shivered all over, and down by the bed, And "Hush! hush! Jinny! hush! hush!" I said; "Look, Tom," she said, "look there! look there!" And the little arms and the little legs- And full of wondher--and "That's the child!" So I took him up, and I says-quite low "Is it Taylor's?" I says; "Oh no! no! no!" "All right!" I says; "and his name?" "It's Simmy: ' And starved to the bones-so "Listen to me! By Him that made me, Jinny ven! And " Simmy!" I says, "remember this!" And then I kissed him; but the little chap And I turned to Jinny, and she tried to rise, And I saw the death-light in her eyes Clasped hands! clenched teeth! and back with the headAye, Jinny was dead, boys! Jinny was dead. "Come here," I says, and I stamped on the floor, And the people'll be 'spectin a drop of drink," And the loblollyboys shoutin "Down with the blunt!" And "hould him! down with him! here's a rig! "Stand back, you cowards; or I'll soon let ye see!" Is that him there asleep? did ye ax? But the very same! the very same! Grew of coorse, and growin, understand ye! But you can't keep them small agin nathur, can ye? And the fringes combin over his eyes! I know I'm a fool-but-feel that curl! Aw he's the only thing I have in all the world. Well, on we marched, and the little thing And not a farlin at me; so the only plan |